


My Darling Divine

by coatlicue



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/F, Family, Future Fic, It's Soft, Motherhood, cheryl and toni adopt a baby girl
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-27
Updated: 2018-04-27
Packaged: 2019-04-28 11:46:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14448630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coatlicue/pseuds/coatlicue
Summary: The idea of family in its purest sense had always been foreign to Toni. But that was before Cheryl, the woman she loves so much that the idea of raising two point five kids behind a white-picket fence with her doesn't immediately make her vomit.-Or, Toni and Cheryl adopt a baby girl.





	My Darling Divine

**Author's Note:**

> title is from the wild child song "darling divine"

"I want a kid."

"W-What?" Toni asks, chest still heaving as she comes down from her high.

"I - I want a kid." Cheryl says as props herself up on her elbows so her eyes meet Toni's. "We're married. I'm a social worker, you're a counselor - we are financially stable and not at risk of losing our jobs. And, well, we have the love to give."

Realizing this isn't an orgasm induced wish, Toni does a double take. She never saw herself being a mother, not after her own parents deserted her. The idea of family in its purest sense had always been foreign to her. But that was before Cheryl, the woman she loves so much that the idea of raising two point five kids behind a white-picket fence with her doesn't immediately make her vomit.

"You're serious?"

Cheryl nods shyly.

Toni smiles, "Okay. Okay, let's have a kid."

Their eyes meet first, shy smiles dancing on their lips. Then Cheryl bends down and her lips meet her wife's.

-

The next day Cheryl comes home with an armful of pamphlets on surrogacy, insemination, and adoption. She drops them on the kitchen table. "Okay, baby. I brought back everything we need to know to make a smart decision on how -"

"I want to adopt." Toni interrupts. As cute as her wife is when she goes full research-monster, Toni had kind of made up her mind.

"Are you sure?" Cheryl asks. "It's kind of a long process."

"Yeah. I mean, I was homeless, Cheryl. I know what it's like to not feel wanted. And I can't bring another kid into this world knowing there are kids out there without homes or families or love."

Cheryl looks down lovingly at her wife, "Yeah, okay. Let's adopt."

-

Cheryl is a social worker, so she knows the process for adoption can take years. She knows it takes double the time for same-sex couples. Despite this fact, she can't help but get discouraged when eight months after their application and background checks go through there's still nothing.

So when Mary's name (Cheryl's coworker who is in charge of her application) pops up on her phone, she can't help but brace herself for more bad news.

"We have a sixteen year old girl down here. She's pregnant, doesn't want to abort but doesn't want to raise the kid." Mary tells Cheryl as soon as she answers the phone. "Listen, I know you and Toni have been waiting to adopt. I wanted to come to you first."

Cheryl's breath hitches, something dangerously akin to hope blossoming in her chest. "I - really?"

Mary chuckles, "Yeah. Her name is Tanya and we told her about you. She wants to meet you both and is ready to sign off. Are you interested?"

Cheryl can feel tears welling up, "Yes. Yes, of course. Let me tell Toni and we'll be right down."

Cheryl hangs up on Mary and runs to the living room where Toni sits, papers strewn around her. "Toni."

Toni looks up immediately, alarmed at Cheryl's haggard expression. "Cher, what's up? You good?"

"Mary called." Cheryl says, and that alone is enough to make Toni stand up. In the past few months, she had warmed up to the idea of having a kid. Had let herself daydream about things like strollers and first days of school and teaching her kid to ride a bike.

"And?" Toni asks, already bracing herself for the answer.

"There's a girl at the center. She's pregnant, but wants to give up the baby. I - Toni I think this could be it."

"Oh my God," Toni's emotions bubble up to the surface before she embarassingly bursts into tears, "Are you serious? Oh my God."

Cheryl pulls Toni into a tight hug. They stay there for a good minute or two, both sobbing openly.

"We need to go meet her." Cheryl says, already pulling on the shoes she had left by the door.

Toni runs after her, feeling the same burst of energy as her wife. They were on the run to meet the rest of their lives.

-

Sitting in the living room of a group home across from a sixteen year old girl who is clearly very pregnant is perhaps the most terrifying thing that Toni has ever done. And she used to be a gang member, so that's saying something.

Thankfully, Cheryl is much more equipped to handle these situations. "Hi, Tanya. I'm Cheryl Blossom, and this is my wife Toni Topaz. Thank you for sitting down to meet with us."

With dark brown skin marred with bruises, chipped acrylic nails, and impossibly tight clothing even over her baby bump, Tanya looks impossibly young. She reminds Toni of the Southside, where girls her age would sport similar bumps all the time.

"Hey," Tanya answers, "So, you guys want my baby?"

They are both taken aback by the girl's brazen nature. But Toni recovers first, "We'd love to raise the baby, Tanya. I - We've been wanting to be parents for a while now."

"I just want my baby to have everything. How do I know you're gonna give it?"

Cheryl pipes up next, "I'm a social worker. Toni is a socio-emotional counselor. We get paid well. I don't know about everything, but I guaruntee you that baby will never lack anything."

"How long have you two been married?"

Cheryl smiles, "Four years. But we've been together since we were sixteen."

"Do you love each other?"

Toni smiles, "Yeah. Yeah, we do."

"Okay." Tanya says, taking a shaky breath. "You can have her. But I want pictures and updates. And when she's eighteen, if she wants to, I want her to be able to meet me."

"Of course." Cheryl says, "But - it's a girl?"

-

Toni knew, in theory, that choosing baby names when her wife was Cheryl Blossom was going to be an entire ordeal. Everything had to have meaning. Nicknames were taken into consideration, as well as gender-neutral options in case their daughter decided she wanted that. No name made the cut.

It almost makes Toni wish the baby had been a boy so they could name him Jason and be done with it.

So when Cheryl turns around in bed to face her and says, "I know what I want to name her," Toni is taken aback.

"Really? Are you sure?"

"Cecilia." Cheryl says, exhaling slowly, "Cecilia Wrenn Blossom-Topaz."

"Cecilia. That's beautiful. Why this name though?"

"It's Ronnie's middle name. I was thinking about it, and I owe Veronica big time. Without her, I never would have emerged from Sweetwater River. I never would have met you. Never would've escaped from the Sisters. Never would've gotten the balls to ask you to marry me. She's been the wind on my back for years."

Toni smiles, "You're right. I'm guessing she's going to be the godmother?"

Cheryl smiles shyly, "Yeah, if that's okay with you?"

"Of course, Cher." Toni reaches out to cup Cheryl's chin with her hand, "As long as Sweet Pea can be the godfather."

"Deal."

"Ten bucks says Veronica's totally gonna cry when you tell her."

-

Cheryl asks Veronica to brunch the day after. She's bouncing in her seat when Veronica bursts through the door of Cafe Blackbird in an elegant black dress, pearls strung around her neck.

"Whoa there, Blossom, you're a bit jumpy today. Accidentally snort some jingle-jangle?"

Cheryl glares at her, but it holds none of the fire it did in high school. Instead, it holds a fondness that can only be built through ten years of friendship. "Fuck you, Veronica. And to think I was going to give you good news."

"You know I'm kidding, Cher. What's so urgent you had to ask me to brunch the day of?"

Cheryl sips her coffee, purposefully taking longer than necessary in an effort to irritate Veronica. She can tell it's working by the way the Latina's brows are furrowing in anticipation.

"Toni and I are having a baby."

Veronica immediately jumps out of her seat to envelop Cheryl in a hug. "Oh my God, the papers went through? I'm so happy for you, Cher!"

Cheryl feels tears prick her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, we got a baby. It's a girl."

Veronica pulls back, one hand still on Cheryl's bicep, "You're going to be a great mother."

"Speaking of mothers, that's actually why I asked you here. I trust you with everything I have. And god forbid anything were to happen to me or Toni - I would trust you with my child. I was hoping you'd be the baby's godmother."

The raven-haired girl immediately bursts into tears, once again throwing her arms over Cheryl's shoulders.

"I'm guessing that's a yes?"

"Of course. Oh my god, that baby is going to be so fucking spoiled." Veronica wipes the tears from under her eyes. Cheryl smirks, knowing as soon as she breaks the next news to her the tears will be flowing again.

"And one more thing..." Cheryl says, pulling back so she's holding both of Veronica's hands in her own. "I want to name her Cecilia, if that's okay with you."

Veronica bursts into tears again, leaning her head on the shoulder of Cheryl's pristine white sweater, which is no doubt getting stained with her mascara.

Great. Now she's out ten dollars and dry-cleaning money. (It's totally worth it, not that she'd ever admit it).

-

Toni and Sweet Pea are playing Fortnite when she tells him. She puts down her phone, turns to him and says, "Sweet Pea, I'm gonna be a mom soon."

Sweet Pea immediately looks up from his phone, resulting in someone killing his character. "You- what?"

"Cheryl and I are adopting a baby girl. I'm going to have a daughter."

Sweet Pea envelops Toni in a bear hug, making her feel as if she's disappearing into him. "Damn, Tiny, congrats! You're gonna be a great mom."

"I know." Toni smiles, "And you're going to be a great godfather, if you're up for it."

Sweet Pea gapes at Toni, mouth opening and closing like a fish. "I - seriously? You're for real?"

"Yeah, Pea. I trust you. Plus, I know you're gonna spoil little Cece rotten."

"You named her Cece?"

Toni smiles, "Cecilia. But I think Cece sounds a little more my speed. A little less princess, a little more tough."

"Of course I'll be the godfather, Tiny." Sweet Pea reaches out to hug Toni again, "She's gonna be so good at video games."

-

"Cheryl." Toni whispered into the dark of their bedroom. "Cheryl."

"Mmm- what?" Cheryl said, shifting around in the bed so that she was facing Toni. "What's up?"

"I - There's only a month left until Tanya gives birth."

Cheryl smiles, "I know. I'm excited."

"What if I'm bad at it?" Toni asks, her voice barely above a whisper. "What if Cece hates me?"

"Baby," Cheryl looks for her wife's hand under the covers, "You're going to be a great mother."

"How do you know that?" Toni asks, tears already pooling behind her eyelids. "I don't know what a good mother looks like. My mom was high for most of my life. I don't - what if I can't figure out how to parent?"

"Toni, you are the most empathetic and gentle person I have ever met." Cheryl tries her best to quell her wife's fears. "You are caring beyond reproach. I have no doubt in my mind that you are going to be the best mother our daughter could ask for."

A single tear slips out from Toni's eye, one which her wife is quick to wipe away. "You are sensational, Toni. We are going to do our best with our daughter because I am not Penelope Blossom just like you aren't your mother. Cecilia is going to be surrounded with so much love that she's not going to know what to do with it, believe me."

Toni reaches out to cup her wife's face, pulling her forward into a kiss.

"I love you." Toni says.

"I love you too, mama."

"So I'm mama?"

Cheryl smirks, "Of course you are, Toni. I'm clearly mom."

"Okay, Cece can call me mama. As long as you still call me daddy." Toni replies, earning her a quick pillow to the face.

-

Apparently, nurseries are also grand ordeals in the Blossom world. Toni doesn't know squat about the differences in paint colors or crib mattresses. But Cheryl grew up spoiled, so every difference matters.

"What do you think for the room, yellow or purple?" Cheryl says, skimming through nursery decoration magazines.

"Uh - we're repainting it? The last owners already have the nursery painted pink."

"Do we really want our daughter to be confined by binary ideas on gender roles and draped in pink before she can even walk?"

Toni shakes her head, "No, I guess not. I think yellow would be pretty."

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking too." Cheryl answered, "Sunflower themed. 'Cause hopefully she'll get your personality and not mine and be a ray of sunshine. I was a nightmare child."

Toni laughs, draping an arm over her wife's shoulders, "I'm sure our daughter will learn to raise hell."

-

Tanya was days past her due date, and the baby had not yet come. It had Toni and Cheryl on-edge, anxious, and irritable. The excitement at the arrival of their baby girl had mixed with worry.

So when they get a call from Tanya on October 8th, both their stomachs drop.

"Hello?"

"I think I'm in labor."

Cheryl and Toni look at each other in a panic, "Okay, okay, are you sure?"

"Either that or I pissed myself. Pretty sure I'm in labor."

Toni bites back a laugh, "Okay. Are you with Mary? Do you have the hospital bag?"

"Yeah. Yeah, she's getting everything and then we're heading over to the hospital. Are - you two are meeting me there, right?"

"Of course, Tanya." Cheryl says, "We'll be right there."

Oddly enough, over the past few months, it had been Cheryl who had stricken a deep friendship with the girl. She is young and scared and alone - many of the things that Cheryl was at sixteen. And through Cheryl constantly reassuring her that they would do the best for the baby, she had opened up to her.

Once at the hospital, Toni takes the role of calling all their friends while Cheryl sits by Tanya's bedside, coaching her through contractions. Veronica shows up first, followed by Jughead and Betty. Sweet Pea and Fangs show up last.

The nurse comes to pull Toni in about three hours after they're admitted, saying "It's time."

Toni's heart is beating about a million miles a minute when she sits next to her wife, smiling at Tanya, whose hair is slicked down to her face.

"How's it going?" Toni asks, smiling. She fails to notice Cheryl quickly shaking her head.

"If your fucking daughter doesn't come out of my vagina right now I swear to - FUCK" Tanya says as another contraction ripples through her.

The doctor that is crouched by Tanya's feet looks up. "You're fully dilated. It's time to start pushing."

Tanya screams, a half-animal sound that makes Toni all the more grateful that she and Cheryl decided to adopt. When that push does nothing, the doctor looks up, "Again."

Cheryl's face is contorted in pain as Tanya squeezes her hand so hard she's afraid it's going to break. But she doesn't mention it.

Tanya screams again, her face dripping sweat. The doctor looks up at them, "The head is out, okay Tanya? Let's push again, one last time, and she'll be here."

The grip on Cheryl's hand is so tight that she's afraid she's not going to be able to move it for a few hours, but she doesn't say anything about it. She lets out another scream, one that once again sounds more animal than human, before a loud cry erupts through the room. Tanya collapses in exhaustion as Cecilia is picked up, covered in amniotic fluid and blood.

"Which one of you wants to hold her first?" The nurse asks Cheryl and Toni.

Cheryl answers, "Tanya, do you want to hold her?"

Tanya nods tearily. The doctor places the baby on her chest. After months of waiting for the papers to go through and months of waiting for her to give birth, Cecilia was finally here. She was beautiful, even if she did look more alien than human at this point. Her skin was a gorgeous dark brown color, and a heap of curly black hair lied flat on her tiny head.

"She's beautiful," Cheryl says, hand reaching out so she can interlace her fingers with Toni's.

"Yeah," Toni answers, already crying, "She's beautiful. And ours."

"Do you want to cut the umbilical cord?" The doctor says, turning to them.

Toni turns to her wife with wide eyes. Cheryl nods, "Go ahead."

After cutting the umbilical cord and letting the doctors whisk Cecilia away to her first bath, the nurses help Tanya change into a fresh hospital gown and then lie down to sleep.

When the nurses bring Cecilia back in, she is nestled in a white hospital blanket and a pink hat, looking a little less alien now that she was clean.

"Are you ready to hold her?" The nurse asks.

"Yeah," Toni says, sitting next to her wife on the couch.

The nurse hands her the baby, "Congratulations, she's beautiful. I'll be back with the papers you both need to sign soon. Do you have a name?"

"Cecilia." Cheryl answers, "Cecilia Wren Blossom-Topaz."

The nurse smiles fondly at the family curled up on the couch and then nods, making his way out of the room.

"Hi." Toni coos, looking down at her daughter. "Hi, love. We're your moms, and we are so happy to finally be able to hold you."

-

Cheryl is the one who brings Cecilia out of the room first to meet the many aunts and uncles that wait for her arrival. They all immediately pipe up, smiling as they see Cheryl holding her baby girl.

"Ronnie." Cheryl says, "Come hold your goddaughter."

Veronica doesn't need to be told twice. She practically jumps out of her seat, speed walking towards the redhead.

"Meet Cecilia," Cheryl says as she hands her over to Veronica.

As expected, Veronica immediately starts crying. "Hi, nena. I'm your madrina. I'm so excited to teach you Spanish so we can talk behind your mommies backs."

"Hey!" Cheryl laughs. "Don't do that."

"Oh, Cher, she's beautiful." Veronica answers, unable to tear her eyes away from her goddaughter. "Congratulations, babe."

"Thanks, Ronnie."

Veronica places a soft kiss on Cecilia's head, "Bienvenida al mundo, cariño."

-

Sweet Pea looks hilarious holding Cecilia. Toni would never tell him, because it would kill his spirit, but he is a clumsy giant. But with a small bundle in his arms, he looks even bigger.

"Damn, T. She looks like a little alien. But she's still so cute."

Toni smiles, "She does, doesn't she? Don't let Cheryl hear you say that, though."

"Sup, Cece?" Sweet Pea says, rocking his goddaughter back and forth, "You ready to make your mama's life a living hell? I'll help you."

"Shut up, Pea."

"Hey, I'm just promising to back up this little princess no matter what."

Toni laughs, a happy, tinkling sound, "Oh God, she's going to be so spoiled."

"Yeah, she is."

-

They bring Cecilia home three days later. They had both taken maternity leave so they could spend their time with their daughter.

Cheryl and Toni curl up on her bed with their daughter as Cheryl puts a bottle to her mouth. She sucks on it greedily, making Cheryl smile.

"I think she has your appetite."

"Of course she does," Toni answers, "Us Topaz women know how to eat."

Cecilia's eyes were open, a vibrant shade of brown. Toni stared happily at her wife and daughter, reaching out to graze Cecilia's hand. Her tiny fingers wrapped around Toni's pointer finger.

"Wow." Toni sighs, "I think I'm in love."

"Yeah," Cheryl agrees, "Me too."

**Author's Note:**

> i'm fuckING soft for them fight me or whatever
> 
> also i didn't proofread this and i'm lowkey high and jetlagged so if it sucks i'm,,, sorry
> 
> drop a comment if you'd like more fics in this universe or prompts for others.


End file.
